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I'd love to hear any argument against this (kindle fire)

N

NateJamesMeyers

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 10, 2010
97
0
Totally serious, the title might sound mean but it's not meant to be.

Here's what i'm talking about.

"Consumers will see the iPad and Kindle Fire side-by-side... and simply ask 'why does
the iPad cost at least $300 more?' They will look at the features - the comparable
amount of content, the Kindle's million e-books, streaming TV shows - and pick the Fire." Extreme tech
 
MacDawg said:
Why do you want to hear an argument against it?
Click to expand...

This is what I meant to put.
At the end of the day though, I guess it depends on what people want. I guess the Fire isn't bad if you just want to browse the web and read books while playing the occasional game here and there.
 
Last edited:
Why do you want to hear an argument against it?

Some folks will want one
Some folks will want the other
Some folks might even want both

Choice is a good thing
 
MacDawg said:
Why do you want to hear an argument against it?

Some folks will want one
Some folks will want the other
Some folks might even want both

Choice is a good thing
Click to expand...

Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
Click to expand...

Hmmm, ok, so buy a Kindle Fire then
I'll keep my iPad and buy the next one too

See how choice works for both of us?
 
The crucial difference, is: Mindshare.
Everyone knows about the iPad, wether you're a tech geek, average Joe, or soccer mom.
It's established as a proven product, even if you know nothing about it(Joe Consumer: "it has to be this price for a reason, right?")
The average consumer, looking at the Fire and iPad side-by-side, will probably view the Fire as 'just another tablet'. Sure, it'll gain some traction, as Amazon will make sure it's front and centre on their pages, but it'll only secure a distant second place.
 
The problem with your post OP is that it doesn't sound like you want to hear arguments against the Fire. You just don't like the iPad and you want others to join you in your dislike.

However the reviews of the Fire don't sound to positive.
 
The fire is going to be on the front page of amazon.com, one of the most visited sites on the web. They'll hear about it ;)

As to why anyone would choose the iPad? Lots of reasons.

Reasonable sized screen for a start - the kindle one is actually half the size, which is a bit small for my taste. Ok for reading a book on, web browsing? Already a bit small. Typing on it is going to be bad. People have already said magazines don't work on it, and that's one thing it's designed for.

Apps, in fact make that almost anything other than watching or reading stuff: the iPad easily justifies the price difference. Maybe one day that will change, but I doubt it.

Tons of storage space. Seriously, 6GB of usable space on the fire is NOT enough for many people. That's like a couple of games, one film, some music and some books. I know that they'll stream video and music, but the rest isn't going to stream, and it also means you're going to have zero content when you're not near fast wifi. If you go on holiday with it and there's no wireless, you just left all your content at home!

Why would you choose a fire then? It's small, cheap, pretty convenient compared to the iPad. Probably pretty handy to just stick in a bag to take out. And if you just want to read on it, perhaps watch the occasional film and a little light gaming, it's good enough. If you're an amazon customer and buy lots of content from them, it's even better.
 
If you're a parent, the iPad is way overkill for the little ones.

It's a great stocking stuffer for a spouse.

The economy is crap.

That's all I got.
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Totally serious, the title might sound mean but it's not meant to be.

Here's what i'm talking about.

"Consumers will see the iPad and Kindle Fire side-by-side... and simply ask 'why does
the iPad cost at least $300 more?' They will look at the features - the comparable
amount of content, the Kindle's million e-books, streaming TV shows - and pick the Fire." Extreme tech
Click to expand...

Many will. But that doesn't mean if the Fire weren't there the same consumer would purchase an iPad. If I walk into an auto dealership and find that I have a choice between a $20K and a $60K car, each of which will transport me to work, take me on vacation, and hold the family, I don't necessarily choose the less expensive automobile. And if it were not available, I wouldn't necessarily choose the $60K model. I might take the bus.

The Fire potentially meets the needs of millions of consumers who don't need or want the features of an iPad and who don't want or cannot afford to spend $500-$800 on a tablet. By the same token, many of those who have purchased the iPad didn't need or want all the features of a laptop and didn't want to spend over $1000 for such a device.

The market for these devices is elastic, not carved in granite. The Fire will attract consumers who would never purchase an iPad despite its greater range of features. Those are not "lost sales" for the iPad even if they are sales for the Fire. And by the same token, many consumers will continue to want a larger tablet with greater flexibility. Those are not lost sales for the Fire.
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
Click to expand...

Actually, yes, it can do quite a lot of things the Fire can't do. The apps that run on the Fire are quite limited compared to what's available for the iPad. The Fire seems to mainly be for people who just want something to read books, watch movies/tv, and surf the web on. The iPad is for people who want to do those things plus more, like edit photos, take handwritten notes, create digital art, do basic editing of documents, play games, etc. The Fire can do a little of that, but not nearly as much as the iPad.
 
there are other threads about this and people have discussed at length the device in relation to the ipad and ipod. i don't think we reached a consensus, but it seems clear to me that the fire will do well with a certain segment of the population and the ipad will do well with another, and in some cases people will own both. there is room in the market for both to do well.

anyone who says the kindle fire is somehow an ipad killer, or makes the ipad look overpriced is obviously not expecting much from a tablet. it is sort of like saying that when car shopping and comparing a ford focus to a bmw, everyone will obviously pick the ford focus because it gets them from point a to point b for less money.

i like the fire, i am sure it will do well, and i hope amazon has success selling it. but, i don't want one and i am happy to pay more for a device that does much, much more. a concrete example would be the tv show i watched on my ipad paired with a wonderful bluetooth speaker this evening, the handwritten notes i took earlier today, or the picture of my receipt that i filed away in evernote. the fire can't do any of that. lot's of people will be fine without the functionality, but not me.
 
Yr Blues said:
If you're a parent, the iPad is way overkill for the little ones.

It's a great stocking stuffer for a spouse.

The economy is crap.

That's all I got.
Click to expand...

That would depend on whether you want to buy them a toy or a device that is actually useful for many purposes.
At least, that's the way I see it. I've been tempted to buy my father a Kindle Fire, but I know I will feel guilty later, so I'm going to do my best to get him an iPad 2 WiFi; 16GB should be enough for him; 32GB would depend on how much I can spend when the time comes.
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
Click to expand...
This probably should have been your first post because it indicates your intentions better. You've clearly made up your mind so I'm really not sure why you're bothering with the topic in a forum that obviously feels differently.

Im buying my brother a Fire and may possibly buy one for myself since I'm a Prime user and it has tons of unique benefits for me. But to say "the iPad can't do anything the Fire doesn't do" is a bit silly.
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
Click to expand...
I'm gonna ask a few questions. Please tell me if you think the Kindle Fire can do any of them.

1. Can the Fire video call or conference with other people?
2. Can the Fire utilize augmented reality?
3. Can the Fire utilize voice activation features?
4. Can the Fire take a picture?
5. Can the Fire auto rotate between landscape and portrait?
6. Can the Fire utilize gyroscopic features for games?
7. Can the Fire utilize 3, 4 or 5 finger gestures?
8. Can the Fire utilize all forms of electronic book formats?
9. Can the Fire view magazines in full scale format?
10. Can the Fire hold more than 6.5gb of data on the device?


There is a lot more i could bring up, but I don't want to go on for pages. It's really what the Fire can't do that limits it as a true tablet. And what it can do, it appears it can't do some of it very well, at least according to some reviews.


That said, if you are an Amazon Prime member, I think this is a great interface for Amazon's web site. And it just happens to allow for book lending, book and magazine reading (well magazine reading isn't exactly an easy affair with the Fire), access to thousands of movies and tv shows and a few games. Of course, if you don't have wifi access all the time, there is no way to store any of those Amazon cloud-based tv shows and movies on the Fire. You could download some movies onto the Fire, but don't expect to put any HD type movies on there. You could fit about 7 low def movies on it, but you wouldn't have room for much else. Just food for thought... If you really thought the Fire could do everything the ipad can, that is.
 
NateJamesMeyers said:
Personally, I don't understand choosing the ipad... totally gonna get attacked for this.

But it can't do anything the kind fire doesn't do. And it costs so much more!

(i'm not counting stuff it can do but sucks at like the camera aspect of the ipad)
Click to expand...

Because the iPad is a full featured tablet. Fire is not.
 
Seriously? The iPad can do so much more than Fire.

1. It has bluetooth, so you can connect a keyboard and other stuff to it.
2. It has more than 5 times the storage space.
3. There's basically an app for most of the things you can think of, drawing, managing databases, accounting, note taking etc.
4. Although the Apple devices itself might be "locked down" as some users say, it's quite easy to put content on it (music, video, etc.) that's not bought from the iTunes Store. It looks like that might be almost impossible with the Fire.
5. The iPad has a motion sensor, allowing it to notice how you're holding it, which makes it a lot more comportable to use.
6. It has GPS (the 3g version) and there are very good travel direction apps.

I really wouldn't know why anyone would get an Fire instead of an iPad if not for the size or the fact that they really don't have money to buy an iPad (in which case it might be better not to spend your money on expensive electronics anyway - including the Fire).
 
As the reviews roll in for the KF it seems like a very limited device that was poorly implemented. It is not even very good for reading. Sounds like crap. Worse, it probably won't be updated very often according to the business model that supports it.

The iPad and the KF are really two quite different devices.
 
I checked out the fire at best buy today. Not impressed. For the most part all it's just a handheld amazon portal. It really should be priced at $99.
 
The Kindle Fire is about half the size and not as capable (only 8GB storage, slower processor, etc.). It's a bit like saying "a Toyota Yaris costs $13,000, why does a Honda Accord V6 cost $27,000?"

Granted, the Fire is nice. I bought one myself and think it will replace my regular Kindle over time, but it isn't an iPad nor do I expect it to be.

Kindle Fire will sell well, but despite Amazon's attempt to compare it to the iPad, the current version is one of those devices that will be sold in addition to, not instead of, the iPad. That might change if Amazon releases a 10" version next year. However, also remember to get the full functionality of the Fire, a Prime subscription is necessary.
 
Browser experience on kindle fire was a let down for me.
I like 199 dollars price.

But, I would choose iPad over kindle fire any day.
 
They will look at the features
Click to expand...
This is where the argument tips. If the consumer actually DOES compare features, then it isn't hard to see why the Fire is $199 and the iPad is $499. If you want/need twice the storage space, bluetooth, cameras (OK, crappy ones), a screen that is twice the size, a flood of accessories (OK, they'll soon be here for the Fire), and a partridge in an Apple tree, then the iPad is reasonably priced. If you could care less for those features (or can't afford them) then the Fire will handle the web, email, most useful apps, and an Amazon jungle of e-media.

Of course it is harder math to figure out when everything (and more than) the iPad is except for the 9.7" screen can be had for $299 (HTC Flyer) and it also supports all the content apps the Kindle runs. Amazon should be more concerned about android 7" tablet competition than any iPad comparison.
 
jca24 said:
I checked out the fire at best buy today. Not impressed. For the most part all it's just a handheld amazon portal. It really should be priced at $99.
Click to expand...

I bet eventually they should give them away if you subscribed to Amazon Prime. They would make so much money just on Amazon shopping.
 
4DThinker said:
Of course it is harder math to figure out when everything (and more than) the iPad is except for the 9.7" screen can be had for $299 (HTC Flyer) and it also supports all the content apps the Kindle runs. Amazon should be more concerned about android 7" tablet competition than any iPad comparison.
Click to expand...

Don't think so. Amazon is a powerful brand. I doubt that one out of a thousand (US) consumers has even heard of "HTC."
 
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